Occupational Safety and Health Administration Logs

is eating at the front desk against OSHA regulations in a dental office?

Public Comments

1. Not if the front desk is not in a treatment area.
2. No
3. It depends on the setup. If you receive chemicals at the front desk it would be. If chemicals sit on the desk or there is exposure to the treatment areas, then yes it would be a problem. If totally isolated, probably not a problem. Bottom line is, if the boss says it is a problem, then it is under OSHA. The boss is the risk assessor for the office under the OSHA regs. They make the call.
4. May not be against OSHA unless like one poster stated, you receive chemicals. However, if your company has a policy against eating at the front desk then it must be enforced. It is extremely rare, but OSHA can file a 5(a) citation if a company does not follow its own safety guidelines. Remember that OSHA is the bare minimum that must be done. On a side note, the front desk seems like the epi-center of all the germs that come and go, so WHY would you want to eat there, and it does not look good to the customer if you are eating in plain site, some of them may have missed a meal to have work done.